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Quantifying Retinal Microvascular Morphology in Schizophrenia Using Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography
Deepthi Bannai1, Iniya Adhan1, Raviv Katz2
1Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
Schizophrenia Bulletin
|September 23, 2021
Summary
Schizophrenia (SZ) patients show retinal microvascular changes, particularly in early stages, indicating potential dysfunction. These alterations correlate with symptom severity, suggesting a link between eye health and schizophrenia progression.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Retinal microvascular changes are observed in individuals with schizophrenia (SZ).
- This study is the first to utilize swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) for a comprehensive analysis of retinal microvascular alterations in SZ.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate retinal microvascular changes in patients with schizophrenia using swept-source OCT-A.
- To correlate these microvascular findings with clinical and cognitive assessments in SZ.
Main Methods:
- 30 patients with SZ/schizoaffective disorder and 22 healthy controls (HCs) underwent swept-source OCT-A.
- Macular OCT-A images were analyzed for vessel density (VD), skeletonized vessel density (SVD), fractal dimension (FD), and vessel diameter index (VDI) in superficial, deep, and choriocapillaris layers.
- Clinical and cognitive assessments, including the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), were performed.
Main Results:
- SZ patients exhibited higher OD superficial SVD, OD choriocapillaris VD, and OD choriocapillaris SVD compared to HCs.
- Early-course SZ subjects showed significantly higher OD superficial VD, OD choriocapillaris SVD, and OD choriocapillaris FD than HCs.
- Higher bilateral superficial VD correlated with lower PANSS positive scores, and higher deep VDI was associated with higher PANSS negative scores.
Conclusions:
- The findings suggest microvascular dysfunction in schizophrenia, particularly in the early stages.
- Clinical associations indicate that microvascular alterations are linked to symptom severity and functioning in SZ.
- Swept-source OCT-A is a valuable tool for examining retinal microvasculature in psychiatric research.
